Abstract
Maltreatment is associated with risk for a wide range of socio-emotional and behavioral problems in adolescence. Despite this risk, many maltreated youth adjust well through the process of resilience. Extant research demonstrates that future orientation is linked to reduced risks for maladjustment in adolescence. Few studies, however, have tested the protective and promotive role of future orientation using positive and negative developmental outcomes among maltreated youth. The present study aimed to investigate the promotive and moderating role of future orientation among a longitudinal sample of maltreated and demographically comparable non-maltreated youth (N = 1354, 51.5% female, 53.2% African American). Data collected from Time 1 (Mage = 4.56, SDage = 0.70) to Time 8 (Mage = 18.514, SDage = 0.615) were used. Compared to the non-maltreated youth, maltreated youth showed increased delinquent behaviors and reduced self-esteem. In addition, future orientation significantly predicted higher levels of social competence and attenuated the adverse effects of maltreatment on youth delinquency and substance use. The findings highlight the role of future orientation in the development of resilience among maltreated youth, bearing significant contributions to prevention and intervention programs designed to protect youth against risks linked to child maltreatment and promote their positive development.
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Acknowledgements
The data used in this publication were made available by the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, and have been used with permission. Data from Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN) Assessments 0–12 were originally collected by Desmond K. Runyan, Howard Dubowitz, Diana J. English, Jonathan Kotch, Alan Litrownik, Richard Thompson and Terri Lewis & The LONGSCAN Investigator Group. Funding for the project was provided by the Office on Child Abuse and Neglect (OCAN), Children’s Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, Dept. of Health and Human Services (The National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect (NCCAN), under the Office of Human Services funded this consortium of studies during the early years of data collection from 04/01/1991 until NCCAN became part of OCAN in 1998.) The collector of the original data, the funder, NDACAN, Cornell University and their agents or employees bear no responsibility for the analyses or interpretations presented here.
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This work was supported by a National Institute on Drug Abuse awarded to Assaf Oshri (1K01DA045219-01).
Data Sharing and DeclarationThe data that support the findings of this study were made available by the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, and have been used with permission.
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Z.C. conceived of the study, conducted the analyses, and drafted the manuscript; A.O. assisted with statistical analyses, guided the conception of the study, and critically revise the manuscript; S.L. helped with the data analyses and interpretation of the results, and offered feedback on the writing of the manuscript; E.S. provided methodological expertise regarding measurement invariance, and provided feedback on the theoretical conceptualization of the manuscript; S.K. offered feedback on the statistical analyses and theoretical conceptualization of the study, and critically revise the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Cui, Z., Oshri, A., Liu, S. et al. Child Maltreatment and Resilience: The Promotive and Protective Role of Future Orientation. J Youth Adolescence 49, 2075–2089 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-020-01227-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-020-01227-9